Reply With QuoteZeno?
(All the pictures were shot by me, and the watches belong to me, unless indicated otherwise)
The letter Z is scarcely populated when thinking of watch brands. I can only think of three brands: Zenith, Zeno Watch Basel and Zodiac. Let me concentrate on the two brands I know better (since I own some watches): Zenith and Zodiac.
Very different watch brands. Letīs start with Zenith. Zenith has a glorious past, being one of the classic pocket watch companies at the end of the XIX century and the beginning of the XX century. In those days watches were personalized with bespoke cases, usually made from silver. Later on, they were also instrumental in the delivery of military watches during WWII (thanks to swiss neutrality, to both camps during the war).
Pocket watches were extremely refined. Of course, the passage of time has left some marks: the cracked dial and the worn out decoration of the silver case.
The movement of Zenith pocket watches was extremely well finished. In particular the regulator (the gear that controlled the speed of the watch, thus allowing for the correct timekeeping of the watch). Later on, that same regulator was included in a 1950s wrist watch, a true watch grial that now sells for 6000 euros! (Picture of the watch not mine! And of course watch not mine!):
That good work and attention to details continued in the 1950s. Here is a manual wind Zenith watch case in gold I own: slim, elegant but also with a sophisticated design.
And the finish of the movement is simply astonishing: it is almost ridiculous that you can buy a vintage gold Zenith for less than 1000 euros, but you would have to spend 6000 euros for a similar movement in a gold case nowadays.
In the late 1960s, before the quartz watch revolution that almost wiped out the whole industry, Zenith was involved in the battle to create the first automatic (as opposed to manual wind) chronograph. In 1969, Zenith, Seiko and a consortium of Dubois-Depraz, Buren, Breitling and Heuer each developed its version. Which of them finished ahead of its rivals is a source of controversy even today. Whereas Zenith announced its achievement f irst, in January 1969, the Heuer Caliber 11 seems to have made it to the global market ahead of the others, in August 1969. Meanwhile, Seiko was quietly working away in the background and released its automatic chronograph on the Japanese market as early as May 1969. The story of this race and the arguments about who was actually first can be found in various blogs and forums. Anyway, Zenith automatic chronometer movements are called El Primero for that reason.
Of course, as many other watch brands, Zenith lost traction during the 2000 hype for big (and not so elegant) watches. Here you have an example (thank God, the watch or the picture not mine!).
Thank God, they recover lucidity and went for the elegant watches they had produced historically. One of the finest examples is this limited edition chronograph fitted with El Primero movement (the model is called 1969 New Vintage):
The quality of the case (the contrast between the brushed pattern and the gloss finish) and the movement is astonishing. Let the pictures tell the story! Even extreme macro/close up shots do not show a single imperfection!
But letīs talk about the second watch brand with a Z: Zodiac. Also a vintage Swiss brand that started in the XIX Century, but with a different luck: the brand is shared with a boat builder as well known and popular as it is unglamorous, it is owned nowadays by the fashion watch company Fossil and, on top of everything, a famous serial killer of the 70s used their logo to sign his killings (From wiki: The Zodiac watch cross-circle symbol was the same symbol used by a serial killer who operated in Northern California in the late 1960s. The Zodiac killer coined his name in a series of taunting letters he sent to the press which he signed using the Zodiac watch symbol). But in the vintage territory of the 1970s/ 80s you can find a good hunting ground. The most popular of the Zodiac watches were, no doubt, their diving watches: the Sea Wolf and Super Sea Wolf. I am going to concentrate in a 1990s model I own, a Super Sea Wolf waterproof to 1000m:
The watch above is not mine. Mine has a damaged dial due to water intake damaging the watch (a reminder to divers: if you do not screw in the crown, the watch will only be 1 cm waterproof!). And the bracelet was missing. But since they are as rare as a henīs teeth, I decided that it was better to have a substandard example rather than not having one.
Definitely the most relevant elements of the watch is the profile of the bezel.
This was the last Zodiac that was interesting from a watch enthusiast point of view.
But let me describe now another Zodiac vintage that is very interesting for a collector. I am talking about the Astrographic SST, a watch that instead of the traditional watch hands, had floating hour, minute and second hands (in fact, the second indicator is a red dot!). I recall seeing one in my childhood and being mesmerized about the almost magical moving hands.
Let me finish this mini review of watch brands starting with a Z with a reminder of what I consider the main conclusion: look for old second hand vintages of this brands. itīs there were the real value for money lies.
Sent from my iPad using TZ-UK mobile app
Zeno?
I mention Zeno Watch Basel in the second para. But since I do not own one I concentrate on Zenith and Zodiac...Originally Posted by manganr
Another one,
Zietwinkel....
Only a microbrand, but Zelos make some nice watches
Looks nice, thatAnother one,
Zeppelin.
Thanks for the write-up. Zenith interest me a lot and I will no doubt try a chrono at some point
Thanks for a super write-up. Vintage Zeniths are seriously under-rated IMO. I've worked on a few and they've always impressed me.
Paul
I'm about to obtain one of the Zodiacs as pictured above with the floating 'hands' along with an extra case.
Great write up to help me better understand them.
Thank you
Jim
the other 3 i know of are: Zenton, Zuriner & Zixen
always rather liked the zuriners in a weird, need to try one day kind of way.
edit: and zinex but i think that is the old name for the zixen?
I've had a few beginning with Z's
Zeno fellow - long gone
Although this is a franken home assembled mongrel with a Zodiac dial
Zenith EP 69 vintage reissue - keeper
Zenith Sporto taken in trade recently
z
Last edited by zelig; 19th August 2017 at 23:55.
You picked tough ones:-)
Zixen is relatively easier but had to dig deep for Zinex
ZentRa. I remember spotting this low rent Seiko 7Axx clone on eBay Germany.
More info on the brand here: http://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.ph...Zentra-Watches
Last edited by Seiko7A38; 20th August 2017 at 00:39. Reason: Adding old TZ-UK link
As already said, very interesting. Thank God, not easy to buy it (and, yes, it is damn expensive...).Another one,
Does a cyrillic "z" count? Zaria:
Picked mine up on impulse at Berlin airport last year. I like it as its completely different to anything else I have and I liked the 12 hour chrono feature.
Cheers
Neil
Quite a few brands starting with Z, I would think that brands beginning X or Q would be more unusual?
Beat me to it :)
Love mine.
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